1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a move-away or drop-away arrow rest that pivots between a first position and a second position with respect to an archery bow and that also moves away from an arrow shaft and fletching when an arrow is launched or discharged from the archery bow. This invention also relates to an apparatus for holding an arrow with respect to the archery bow, particularly when the arrow is loaded on a bow string of the archery bow, in an unloaded or at rest condition.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Some conventional arrow rests move away, drop away, fall away or are otherwise forced away from an arrow shaft as an arrow is launched or discharged from the archery bow. It is known to use a return bias force to move the arrow rest away from the arrow when the arrow is discharged. In conventional arrow rests having the move-away or drop-away feature, flexible elastic members, such as rubber tubing, string, cords or the like have been used to overcome the return bias force and thus move the arrow rest from its biased position. Once the return bias force is overcome, the arrow rest moves into a second or loaded position, to support the arrow shaft prior to launching the arrow.
Conventional flexible members are in a tension condition when the bow string is drawn back, into the loaded position. As the bow string is drawn back, conventional flexible members stretch until they can stretch no further or until the return bias force of the arrow rest is overcome and the arrow rest moves into a loaded position. One problem with some conventional flexible members is that when the bow string is released, the length of the flexible member decreases for a certain relatively short time period, until the return bias force of the arrow rest can again overcome the tension force in the flexible elastic member and thus return the arrow rest to the unloaded position. However, even with the relatively short time period the arrow shaft is discharged before the conventional flexible elastic member allows the arrow rest to move sufficiently away from the loaded position. Thus, the arrow shaft and the fletching of an arrow move across the arrow rest before the arrow rest can drop away and provide the necessary clearance for the arrow shaft and the fletching to completely clear the arrow rest.
Some conventional flexible members have a flexible member with one end that attaches directly to a bow cable. If an end portion of a flexible member is attached to a downwardly acting tuning cable, such cable can travel as much as 4 to 5 inches as the archery bow is drawn or released. Because of such travel distance, the end portion of any connected flexible member must also travel such distance. Traveling such distance can also increase the time period that is required for the return bias force to overcome the tension force applied by the flexible member, when an arrow is discharged from the archery bow.
Other conventional arrow rests that drop away or move away from the loaded position, or are normally biased into an unloaded position, have a rigid member or linkage between the bow cable and the arrow rest. The rigid member overcomes the problems associated with the flexible elastic member. However, rigid linkages are difficult to finely tune or are relatively intricate.
It is one object of this invention to provide a pivotally mounted arrow rest that instantaneously or immediately moves away from an arrow when a bow cable moves forward during launch or discharge of the arrow.
It is another object of this invention to provide a holding apparatus that holds an arrow shaft near an arrow rest, when the arrow is loaded in an archery bow, in a condition where a bow string of the archery bow is not yet drawn back, or at rest.
The move-away or drop-away arrow rest and the arrow holder, both of this invention, can be used either together or as individual pieces of archery equipment. When used together, the holding apparatus holds the arrow shaft near a bow riser or a bow handle of the archery bow, when a nock end of the arrow is loaded on the bow string but the bow string is not yet drawn back far enough to pivot the arrow rest into a loaded position. At the same time that the arrow rest is pivoted into the loaded position, the arrow rest lifts or otherwise moves the arrow shaft out of the holding apparatus.
When the arrow shaft is positioned within the holding apparatus, such as when the arrow rest is in the unloaded position, the archery bow can be carried or moved into many different positions and the holding apparatus maintains the arrow shaft in a generally fixed position with respect to the archery bow. The holding apparatus of this invention prevents the arrow shaft from falling off of a shelf of the riser portion.
In one embodiment of this invention, the holding apparatus is wider than a diameter of the arrow shaft and thus the arrow shaft can move, to a limited extent, within the holding apparatus. The limited movement is acceptable because when the arrow rest moves into a loaded position, the arrow rest contacts and self-centers the arrow shaft with respect to the arrow rest and precisely positions the arrow shaft in a shooting window. In one embodiment of this invention, the arrow rest has two prongs that are spaced apart from each other. The prongs can easily center the arrow shaft on the arrow rest by simply using gravity forces.
In one embodiment of this invention, inside surfaces of walls forming the holding apparatus have a matte finish that provides enough friction between the inside surface and the arrow shaft to hold the arrow shaft within the holding apparatus, even when the archery bow is rotated, tilted or otherwise moved. Such feature allows an archer to mount an arrow by attaching a nock end to the bow string, and place the arrow shaft within the holding apparatus. When the bow string is not drawn back far enough to lift a pivotal arrow rest, in one embodiment, the walls frictionally hold the arrow shaft. Thus, an archer can load an arrow with respect to a bow and place the arrow shaft within the holding apparatus, and then carry the bow through different field conditions, without the arrow shaft falling or otherwise moving away from an area of the bow riser. When an archer spots a target, the archer can then place the archery bow into a firing position. With the pivotal arrow rest according to this invention, the archer can then draw the bow string and thereby pivot the arrow rest into a loaded position, which lifts the arrow shaft out of and away from the holding apparatus. When the arrow is discharged from the archery bow, neither the arrow shaft nor the fletching contact or interfere with the arrow rest or with the holding apparatus.
When an arrow rest can instantaneously or immediately pivot or otherwise move away from the arrow shaft and the fletching during, launch or discharge of an arrow, there is a much greater chance that the arrow rest will not interfere with a flight path of the arrow. The arrow rest according to this invention uses a flexible inelastic member as a linkage between the bow cable and the arrow rest. Because the flexible member of this invention is also inelastic, there is no relatively short time period necessary, such as associated with the previously discussed conventional arrow rests, for the flexible inelastic member of this invention to decrease in length. The flexible inelastic member of this invention instantaneously or immediately overcomes the return bias force and thus the arrow rest of this invention instantaneously or immediately begins acting to move the arrow rest away from the discharged arrow.
In one embodiment of this invention, the flexible inelastic, member is a cable that preferably but not necessarily has an outer coating or a sheath. In another embodiment of this invention, the flexible inelastic member is a plastic rod. The flexible inelastic member according to this invention preferably has a relatively low modulus of elasticity, which provides a relatively low resistance to bending.
Relatively high-speed photography has shown that in many conventional drop-away or move-away arrow rests, the arrow rest does not move away from and provide necessary clearance for the arrow shaft and/or the fletching. In such conventional arrow rests, the arrow shaft and/or the fletching contact the arrow rest during discharge movement of the arrow with respect to the archery bow. The flexible inelastic member of the arrow rest according to this invention, provides instantaneous movement of the arrow rest away from the arrow, at the same time that the bow cable moves forward during discharge of the arrow.